Her Brood
by minimumstitch
Summary: Myfanwy reflects on her adopted family.


Myfanwy cocked her head, observing her brood below. They were so different from the family she had left at home. She didn't understand their ways at all, but she had grown to be fond of these fragile creatures.

At home things had been simple, you hunted to eat or you starved, you mated to create young and you fought for your territory. Here things were so different, food was brought to you and mating appeared to be random with no young ever produced. The only thing that appeared to be the same was that there was a constant fight for dominance.

Ianto and Jack bemused her, they seemed very competent and Jack was a good leader but he did not seem to understand the purpose of mating; she had tried to point out that they would be unable to breed successfully but they didn't seem to understand her. Still they appeared to be content with the situation.

Gwen and Owen had figured out a successful pairing to reproduce but so far no young had been produced. She was beginning to believe that reproduction was a major problem with her adopted brood.

Myfanwy can smell the desire to mate coming from Tosh as soon as Owen enters a room, but Tosh had obviously lost the battle for dominance with the newcomer, Gwen. To be honest, Tosh had not put up much of a fight when Gwen entered her territory and took her would- be mate, not like the others had when Mary, Lisa and John had invaded their territory. Now those had been proper territorial battles!

The interaction between the brood also confused Myfanwy. They behaved one way in front of the rest of the brood but changed completely when alone with just one other member present. Jack and Ianto were a fine example. In front of them all, Jack was the dominant male and Ianto was silent and obeyed the orders the older male gave him. However, as soon as the others left, it was Ianto that was the dominant male with Jack quietly obeying his orders.

When they were all together, Owen challenged for dominance and treated the others as subordinates. He was loud and failed to obey orders and Myfanwy could see the hurt that he caused Toshiko. She may not be able to understand their squawking but she could understand their body language, the aggressive stances and the dejected hunching. Owen on his own, however, was a totally different male. She sometimes found him gazing at things she couldn't see, water running down his face, these times were quickly followed up by intense periods of activity as though he could banish the painful memories if he worked hard enough.

Gwen and Tosh were the only ones that never changed. Gwen was always loud, insolent and disobedient. She didn't know why Gwen had not been removed from the brood, her presence was a disruption and had caused more problems than she had solved. She did not recognise personal boundaries and, had she been a member of Myfanwy's old colony she would have found herself banished; too dangerous to the stability of the colony.

Tosh was always quiet no matter who was with her; the only thing that changed was her body language. Her body radiated discomfort when Owen was present, irritation around Gwen and it was only when Jack and Ianto was present that she totally relaxed. The only exception to this was when she was intent on her tasks, her body moving fluidly with graceful, efficient movements; it was only then that Myfanwy could see the true Toshiko emerge. It was a shame because this Toshiko was capable of reasserting her place in the pecking order but she only ever emerged when she was caught up in the beeping, flashing machines.

Myfanwy had believed that there were no soul mates in the brood but then Jack had left and Ianto had mourned. The sound of him keening in their nest had been a familiar sound at night. It was as though part of him had died. He had seldom eaten and when the others left he'd moved automatically, cleaning the hub. Myfanwy had tried to bolster his spirits, wrapping her wings around him and trying to get him to eat, offering him her fish but to no avail. When Jack returned Ianto's mourning had turned to anger. Myfanwy was proud of Ianto for making Jack prove himself before taking him back.

When Jack had returned Myfanwy had shown her displeasure with him by pecking and screeching at him but she soon stopped when she paused for breath. She had sensed that this man was not the same as the one who had left. He had seemed older and more uncertain. At night she'd heard his screams coming from the nest but had been too large to go down and sooth him, so instead, she had cooed softly from the entrance until he had quietened.

The night screaming had not stopped until Ianto had resumed nesting with Jack (he had left the nest as soon as Jack had returned). They had quickly fallen into their old pattern, occasionally falling asleep on the small soft sofa in the hub, entwined in each other. Times like these were difficult for Myfanwy; they reminded her of the mate she had left behind.

She had resigned herself to her life here, she had adapted. She had given up hunting and had become accustomed to the strange tasting food she was offered. She missed the feeling of flying free in the sun but she comforted herself with the thought that she could fly free at night when the world was quiet, the sounds that had driven her into the small warehouse where she had been found by Ianto mercifully subdued. She had a new family, true they were strange and she didn't understand them but they were family, hers to protect and care for. She was content.


End file.
